Cherry Upside Down Cake

The simplicity of this cake can’t be beat. Slightly caramelized sweet juicy cherries sit on a super moist vanilla cake.

Ingredients

3 tbsp	45 mL	unsalted butter
1/2 cup	125 mL	brown sugar
4 cups	1 L	California cherries, pitted

Cake

½ cup	125 mL	unsalted butter
1 cup	250 mL	granulated sugar
2	2	eggs
2 tsp	10 mL	vanilla
11/2 cups	375 mL	all-purpose flour
11/2 tsp	7 mL	baking powder
¼ tsp	1 mL	each baking soda and salt
¼ tsp	1 mL	nutmeg
½ cup	125 mL	buttermilk
		Icing sugar (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F (180C). Grease a 9-in. (23-cm) baking pan. In small pan, melt butter. Stir in brown sugar, cook until sugar dissolved and boils for 1 minute. Pour into pan and spread evenly. Arrange cherries in a single layer over sugar mixture (you may have a few extra).

Using an electric mixer, beat butter until creamy. Gradually add sugar and continue to beat until creamy. Add eggs one at a time, scraping down sides until blended. Add vanilla and beat. In a small bowl, stir flour with baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg.  Gradually add flour to butter mixture alternately with milk, starting and ending with flour.

Scrape batter over cherries and spread evenly. Bake in centre of preheated oven until a toothpick comes out clean, 60 to 70 minutes.

After 50 minutes, cover cake loosely with foil if too dark.  Run a knife around the edge of cake pan.

After 15 minutes, carefully invert onto a cake plate. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Just before serving, dust with icing sugar if you want.

Servings: 10

Prep time: 20 minutes
Baking time:  1 hour
Standing time: 15 minutes